


Oh, oh those summer nights

by MoonOwl



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Both Canon Universe and AU fics, Fluff and Angst, M/M, One Shot Collection, Originally Posted on Tumblr
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-02
Updated: 2015-08-17
Packaged: 2018-04-12 12:34:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4479419
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoonOwl/pseuds/MoonOwl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>EruRi Week 2k15: Summer Edition </p><p>Day 1: It's painfully obvious to everyone but Erwin that he's a father to his soldiers.<br/>Day 2: When the choice of "paper or plastic" gets complicated.<br/>Day 3: Perhaps it’s not best to be texting your boyfriend when you’re in the confessional with a priest.<br/>Day 4: With every touch, Levi remembers more and more.<br/>Day 5: Levi has always had an iffy relationship with scars.<br/>Day 6: Levi takes care of Erwin after an accident that may or may not have been his fault.<br/>Day 7: Erwin and Levi are most definitely not dating.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Family

“Come on, who are you? Their dad?”

Hange’s comment takes Erwin aback for a moment. _Of course not_ , he wants to reply, his decision for the Scouting Legion comes out of necessity and reason. Nothing about his plan suggests that he sees his soldiers as children to be raised and disciplined. Yet, something inside of him keeps him from responding to Hange’s remark.

“Now, Erwin, I am the first to say that our soldiers should be in top shape both physically and mentally, but putting aside time every evening for our soldiers to study up on titan biology and history? Seems less like soldiers trying to fulfill an objective and more like a strict father making sure his kids get top marks on their exams.” Hange explains, raising their eyebrows and smirking knowingly at Erwin. “Listen, there’s what you do to handle the situation: you get me some more funding for research as well as giving me a larger research team. That way you get some real results.”

Hange’s suggestion had a point, Erwin had to admit, even if it was more costly. Trusting their judgment, he decides not to counter them, although he is not so keen on the idea that he has taken on a fatherly role in relation to his subordinates. “We can see about expanding our funds and soldiers for research, but I doubt it will happen.”

Giving Erwin a sideways grin, Hange shrugs their shoulders. “I suppose we’re done here, then,” they rise from their seat, offering a final salute. “See ya around,” they say as they exit. “Pops.”

He tries to dismiss Hange’s closing words and begins to shift through his papers to find a key document regarding those often miniscule funds. He thinks he’s just about the find it when the door to his office rushes open.

Even before he looks up he knows that his visitor is Levi. No one else comes by unannounced, unless of course, a serious emergency has occurred. He’s always grateful when it’s Levi who stops by, for, well, several reasons.

Levi takes a seat across from Erwin’s desk, crosses his arms and looks straight at him for a moment. “How the fuck do you do it?”

“Do what, exactly?” Erwin asks, completely disregarding his documents.

“Get these teenagers to respect you.” Levi responds with a tone that suggests that Erwin had missed the obvious. “They listen to me out of fear of punishment, but just barely. It was all fine until recently. They don’t admire or even like me anymore. I never cared for the attention, but God if I could get a little respect from them,” he takes a sharp breath out of his nose and raises his eyebrows. “I guess finding out that ‘Humanity’s Strongest’ is actually an effeminate clean freak who doesn’t work well with others abruptly ends any shred of their admiration. But you’ve got your oddities and quirks too, _hell_ , there isn’t a single one of us in this goddamn army who doesn’t. But you, they never shut up about you. Each and every one of them loves you. Arlert especially, he wants to be just like you when he grows up. Commander and everything.” For a moment, Levi takes a look at Erwin and study his face. “He’s even got your eyebrows.”

Levi’s comment takes him right back to Hange’s earlier ones. Perhaps Hange might not have been simply joking about his ill-thought out proposal. “Levi, are you suggesting that they see me as a father figure?” he asks.

“Well, I guess I am,” Levi remarks, as if he’s just found the answer to his question all along. “You’re more of a father to those kids than not. It’s not like the Scouting Legion attracts many people with intact families. I mean, look at me and you.”

Erwin takes a moment to think about Levi’s comments. In truth, he does figure that he’s held all of the pride that a father should have of his children in his soldiers. He cares for them, even if they disappoint him or make mistakes. He could be a father figure to them, he supposes.

But, what kind of father sends his own children to their deaths?

“You even look like a father,” Levi remarks a hint of humor in his voice, taking Erwin away from his more morbid thoughts for a while. “Your hair, your posture, and you’re just about old enough to be the father of a 15-year-old.”

“I think if I had children I would have waited a few more years,” Erwin says, a smile crawling onto his face. “I might have a 10-year-old by this point though.”

“Good,” Levi responds. “Because I’m too young to have a teenage child, but I could have a nine or 10-year-old at this point. Oh, but God, would our kid would have been ugly as sin anyways,” he continues with a roll of the eyes and a teasing smile. “Can you imagine a child with your face? Fuck, what about a baby? You must have been something to look at as an anklebiter.”

Erwin lets out a little chuckle. “I always thought I was a cute kid. My mother says so, anyways.”

“That doesn’t count. All mothers say that,” Levi responds. “My mother loved my dirty little mug more than anything.”

“I suppose,” Erwin says. He still smiles gently at Levi, but the smile changes to a sadder sort of smile. “that this is what we have for a family.” Following the suit of his smile, the rest of his face changes as well. His eyebrows lift a little, his lips part slight, and his gaze softens.

Levi knows exactly what he’s thinking about.

“I should get going,” Levi remarks, his voice quieting just a bit. “I have my own paperwork to do.”

Levi gets up from his chair and Erwin’s gaze follows him all the way across the room. He watches Levi turn back to him just as he opens the door to the hallway.

“You would have made wonderful father,” Levi says, halfway through the door. “In the literal sense.”  

Just as Levi leaves, Erwin thinks about what a wonderful family he has.


	2. Choice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I took a liberal interpretation on today's prompt.

Everything about this grocery store annoys Levi in all the same ways that Hange annoys him. 

The walls of Hange's beloved locally-owned, vegetarian eco-friendly grocer are littered with little “fun facts” about how humanity has completely doomed itself by dirtying up the waters and polluting the air and how the mainstream food industry is quite literally the devil in their eyes. Alongside these fun facts are cute little messages of inspiration about how if we all band together we can make a difference and the save that planet that they had previously claimed as unsalvageable.

Levi hates these kinds of places just as much as he hates Hange's tirelessly long environmentalist rants. He also hates that Hange keeps trying to get him to come on their shopping trips, as they're friends with the manager and totally believe that he is Levi's type. Levi has no interest in dating one of Hange's crunchy granola friends (just hearing Mike and Nanaba talk about their homemade vegan baby food a clothes diapers made from recycled fibers was nauseating enough) but that is another issue for another day. At least vegetarian food is almost universally kosher. That probably has to be the store's only perk in Levi's eyes. 

Hange had only sent him to the store to pick up a few things after his shift at the hospital, so hopefully the trip will be quick. Every worker in the store seems happier than most other grocery workers, which only irritates Levi further. After about 50 hellos from every worker he encountered and two suburban moms giving him “advice” on what to put in his basket, he completes Hange's list and heads to the check-out. 

He picks the register with the shortest line, one that's managed by a bored looking teenage girl with a nose ring wearing thick, black eyeliner. Finally, someone as grumpy and disinterested as him. After the old lady wearing gaudy costume jewelry and a tourist t-shirt from Florida and a breaded man with long hair sporting the winning socks-and-sandals combination exit the line, he starts to unpack the about 12 or so groceries from his basket. He reads the girl's nametag. 'Annie', it says. 

“I'd like my groceries double-bagged with paper and plastic,” he instructs Annie as she scans his first few items. 

Cocking her head to the side and nearly glaring at him, thee girl stops scanning his groceries. “We don't do plastic bags here,” she says in an annoyed voice. “It's like...super shitty for the planet or...something,” she continues as she begins to mumble. She sighs, rolling her eyes. “'Here at Atlas Grocery customers have a choice of using paper bags made from recycled paper products, their own reusable tote bags, or purchasing one of our own EarthFriend totes,” she points lazily to a line of colorful tote bags on the wall. “That are made from recycled plastic bottles for just $3,'” she says as if she was still reading it off of the training manual. “That's like, our company policy about bags.” 

Fuck that, Levi thinks to himself. Paper bags on their own are harder to hold and more likely to rip. Hange didn't give him any of their tote bags and he sure as hell is not going to drop $3 of his hard earned cash on a bag because some crunchy granola policy wants him too. 

“If you can make tote bags out of plastic why can't you just make plastic bags out of recycled plastic?” he asks. 

“I don't make the rules I just tell them to the hipsters and weird old people who come here,” she explains. 

“I can't be the only one who complains about this,” he counters. “You guys should really do something like that. Paper bags are awful and those tote bags look cheap as hell.” 

Heaving a sigh the girl reaches for the phone attached to her station. “Erwin, I've got a difficult customer at station 5.” 

Oh fuck. This is just what he needs. 

“Yeah, so,” the girl starts again as she places the phone on the receiver. “My manager is gonna handle you.”

“Listen, kid, I was not --” Levi starts to say, but before he can finish, the manager arrives. 

“What seems to be the problem, sir?” Erwin asks, his one hand on his hip and his shoulders straight and commanding. 

Oh.

If this is Hange's friend then Levi has to hang around their friends more often. 

This guy does not look like he's crunchy granola. Levi was expecting someone wiry with messy hair like Hange and Nanaba, but this guy is anything but. With immaculately styled hair, handsome features, and a well toned body, Levi is convinced that this guy could have worked as a model at some point. 

Coming back to the situation at hand, Levi begins to defend himself. “I was not being difficult, I was offering a suggestion to your cashier here. You should offer more bagging choices to your customers. There's gotta be like some type of tree hugging plastic out there.” he says. Which sort of is, in a way, a lie. He is being difficult, but he is a difficult person at heart. 

Erwin turns to Annie and gives her an apologetic smile. “I'll handle this,” he says, dismissing her. “Why don't you take your break now?” 

Rolling her eyes, Annie walks past the two as she takes out her cellphone. 

Erwin then turns to face Levi. “Well, we welcome suggestions but in our commitment to environmentalism, Atlas Grocery doesn't carry plastic bags. Yes, there are biodegradable plastics, but we believe in following the 3 R's in order, so we want to reduce and reuse before we recycle. As both the manager of this store and a proud environmentalist, I whole-heartedly stand by these convictions. Is there anything else I can help you with today?”

Fuck, he's even attractive when he's spouting the same tree hugging spiel that Hange goes on about. 

“Okay, whatever, I'll just take the fucking paper bags,” Levi says. “It's not like I even came here out of my own choice. My roommate sent me out for this.” 

Erwin takes a look at him for a second or so. “Are those nursing scrubs you're wearing?” 

Levi blinks at him once in annoyance. “No, clearly this a construction uniform.”

“Is your name Levi Ackerman?” Erwin asks, ignoring Levi's completely sarcastic reply as he completes his purchase at the register. “Is your roommate Hange Zoe? They're a very good friend of mine. They've told me a lot about their roommate who's a nurse at the neonatal unit at Utgard Medical.” 

Levi takes a moment to process the fact that this gorgeous crunchy granola hippie has heard things about him. “Uhm, uh, yeah, that's me,” he says after a beat. “What exactly have they told you?”

“Oh just the usual, basic things,” he responds. “Like how you're a nurse,” he says gesturing to the scrubs. “You guys knew each other in high school, you have three cats, things of the like.” 

Levi notices a change in Erwin's seemingly confident demeanor. Wait, is his face turning red? Is this guy actually blushing at Levi?

Since he never wants to set foot in this type of store again, Levi figures that he's got nothing to lose. “Did they tell you that I'm a single guy who has a thing for men who are about a foot taller than me and look like politicians? Or did they leave that out so they could talk more about my cat addiction?” 

Erwin's face bares a look of surprise, but something in Levi knows that it's a face of surprise at his brashness and not at the information about his preferences in men. “They mentioned that a few times,” he replies after a moment. “And that you had black hair and a button nose.”

“For what it's worth I still think you're pretty hot even if you work here,” Levi says. “So I won't mind you being one of those enviro-nuts much.” 

“And for what's it's worth working here as given me a high tolerance for rude people.” Erwin responds. “So you're still fine with me.” 

“Oh, you bite back, I like that.” Levi says, a flirtatious grin growing in his face. 

“Do you want to maybe get a coffee sometime?” Erwin asks. “There's this great place down the street, it's all fair trade organic, they use soy – “

“Just,” Levi starts, holding up a hand to stop another potential spiel. “Just call it a coffee shop if you're with me, okay?”

“Okay,” Erwin replies, a hint of a smirk on a his face. “I think I can manage that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the record, I am very much the type to shop at a grocery store like this one. Save the planet, friends.


	3. Confession

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this chapter deserves a disclaimer because I know that religion can be a touchy subject for some people. This is very much an affectionate parody of growing up Catholic and it's very much based on my own experiences of being raised Catholic. I don't intend to speak for everyone who grew up Catholic or is in any sense of word Catholic.

Erwin previously only went to confession twice in his 16 years of life. 

The first time was his first penance back in the second grade. The second time was that time Mom had made him and Nanaba go after a particularly disastrous prank that they had played on their cousins back one Easter that resulted in two stains on her new carpet, four phone calls from disgruntled neighbors and five iguanas roaming the neighborhood. 

Just about two months shy of making his confirmation, the directors of Religious Education and Catechism at St. Maria's Parish decided to make the kids of the 10th grade confirmation class go to Confession on a particularly cold February night, which would mark Erwin's third time in the confessional booth. 

Sitting next with his class in the basement of the church hall, he was only half listing to one of confirmation class teachers explain the evening's objective when his phone had vibrated. “hey,” reads the text from Levi on the screen of Erwin's phone. 

“I can't really talk right now,” Erwin texted back. “I'm at confirmation class.” 

Erwin himself wasn't too particularly religious. When he was in third grade he overhead another student in CCD say that being left-handed was a sin and cried the entire car ride home because he had been left-handed by default, seeing as he was born with only a left arm. While his mother assured him that it wasn't true, it left him with a shaky relationship with the Church. Later in life, he grew to realize that he was largely a skeptical person in all areas of the world. 

Dad, who at the end of the day was a free thinking agnostic, came from a long line of English protestants but Mom was a devout Catholic. Although she accepted that Erwin had most likely taken the same path as his father and that his sister had her own interests in paganism, she still insisted that the both of the twins get confirmed. She said that if the kids ever decided to return to the church or marry a Catholic, getting confirmed in the tenth grade would make everything easier. Erwin didn't exactly follow his mother's logic, seeing as he had about a fifty percent chance of marrying someone that the Church would not allow him to marry, and more pertinently, he was dating a Jewish boy. However, Erwin didn't mind going to confirmation class too much. He enjoyed learning of any kind and he found Church history to be interesting, even if he didn't necessarily believe in the religious aspect behind said history. The teachers liked him as well because he was a polite and respectful young man who didn't wear basketball shorts and t shirts with scantily clad women on them in the middle of the cold Minnesotan winter like some of the other teenage boys at St. Maria's did, even if he had the feeling that some of them knew that he liked boys as well as girls, as he didn't exactly make a point to hide it. 

“can't you just text me under the table, like you do in class?” Levi responds in his typical uniformly lowercase texting style. 

“Probably not,” Erwin typed back. “They're making us go to confession tonight.” 

“yeah but jesus was jewish and you celebrate his birthday on december twenty-fifth and i'm jewish and my birthday is december twenty-fifth, but i'm cuter so i win, and i should take priority,” Levi's next text read. “isn't that the thing were you go into that booth and tell the priest about your fuck ups? can't he not see you or something? you can text there.”

“Yeah but it's risky.” Erwin responded.

“we haven't texted a lot recently though,” Levi responded. “we just really only talk to make plans but we don't like...talk.” 

“But we talked in person yesterday? Isn't that okay?” 

“Hey,” Mike interjected in a whisper from beside Erwin as Pastor Nick droned to the kids about the importance of asking for the forgiveness of sin. “Who are you texting?”

“Just Levi.” Erwin replied. 

“You know, Jesus is watching you participate in that sinful homosexual activity,” Mike responded in a tone that mocked Pastor Nick's voice. 

“Yeah and Jesus was watching you get to second base with my sister last week too,” Erwin responded in his normal voice. 

“Yeah but we're still technically virgins, so it's chill with the Big Man upstairs,” Mike responded with a smirk and a little laughter. “It's the loophole for us straights.”

(Nevermind that Mike was most certainly an atheist and that he and Erwin had made out once or twice before out of “curiosity”.) 

“Man, I can't believe they're making us do this,” Mike continued to whisper to his friend. “Like why can't they just make us watch one of those stupid videos like they did two weeks ago? This is so gay.”

Erwin shot his friend a look of annoyance and disappointment for his subtle homophobia. 

“Oh, sorry bro,” Mike said apologetically. “Old habits, ya know?” 

Erwin rolled his eyes and muttered a “whatever, it's okay” while deciding not to bring up any of those times at band camp. Personally, he thought it was a little strange to have them go and confess their sins literally a week after one of the directors was arrested for embezzling from the church's religious education funds, but he wasn't going to say anything. 

Feeling a vibration in this left pant pocket, he took out his phone and looked at Levi's newest text. “so what are going to confess?”

“I don't know really know,” Erwin responded back. “I can't really think of anything bad I've done recently.” 

“you should apologize for constantly wearing khaki pants. that's got to be a sin.”

Before Erwin could text back a witty reply, the co-director of religious education, Mr. Manzetti, instructed the kids to line up in one of two lines to confess to either Father Sean or Father Antonio. Erwin hoped whichever line he picked was Father Sean's. He seemed to have “more chill” as the other kids say. Following Mike, he got up and changed his phone setting from “vibrate” to “silent.” 

Mike and Erwin continued to talk in a whisper while waiting in line as Erwin periodically took out his phone to text Levi. “You looked really cute yesterday,” one of Erwin's texts to Levi read. “I mean, you look cute everyday, but you just look really pretty when you wear eyeliner.” 

“thanks,” Levi responded. “you look cute everyday too ;)”

Levi's text was accompanied by a recent selfie of his, which brought a smile to Erwin's face. He wished Levi would get a facebook or an instagram so he could go through pictures of his face all day but Levi disliked social media, or really anything that encouraged him to socialize with people outside of his few chosen friends. 

Soon enough, Erwin and Mike had found the line before them dwindling and they were closer and closer to the confessional. As Mike entered and then left just about a minute or so after, he made the finger gun gesture at his friend, saying “you're next,” afterwhich Erwin entered the booth. 

Erwin took a deep breath and began with the standard “Forgive me Father, for I have sinned,” but before he could finish, the screen of his phone suddenly brightly lit up with a notification of a new text from Levi. 

A silence between the priest and Erwin occurred. 

“Son, are you texting?” The voiced from the other side of the partition asked. 

“...yes.” Erwin replied with hesitation.

“Who are you texting?” Father Sean asked in the same cautious yet warning tone as before.

“...my boyfriend.” Erwin had answered after a moment. Erwin had a habit of lying, but since he felt no shame of having a boyfriend, he decided against withholding the truth. 

The priest heaves a sigh and Erwin can feel the disappointment in the air. He's ready for the scolding about not only his sexual orientation but for his texting antics as well. 

“Well, between you and me,” the Father said. “I don't really believe that He concerns himself too much with the gender of the partners of His children. But you really should put the phone away while you're in His house.” 

“I understand, Father.” Erwin replied, mentally sighing in relief that he wasn't being reprimanded for his bisexuality, just for his rudeness. 

“Is there anything else you would would like to confess?” The priest asked. 

Erwin took a moment to think about that. In truth he was wrong earlier, he had done some things recently that he wasn't proud of. He took another deep breath and began again. “Well, I lie, uhm, a lot. I can be kind of cold to my friends, and to my mom and my sister. I tend to run my mouth on stuff I shouldn't, and maybe I don't tell my boyfriend I appreciate him enough, and maybe that's why he really wanted to talk because I don't talk to him enough.” 

The Father took in what he said and recommended he say three Hail Mary's and that he can go forth and try to do good. The usual, Erwin thought, trying to remember back to his previous times in the booth. 

“And son,” Father Sean said just as Erwin started to leave. 

“Yes father?” Erwin said, sitting back down for a moment in the booth.

“Remember, you can still wait until marriage in this country.”

“Yes, Father,” Erwin said as he began to leave the for the last time with a smile that the priest couldn't see forming on his face. 

…

Erwin resolved not to touch his phone again until he got home. Upon checking his phone he realized he missed a few angry texts from Levi. He decided it might be best to call him. 

“Hey,” Erwin said into his cell phone. “Sorry about that. I got uh, caught texting in the confessional.” 

Levi sighed in relief. “I got scared that you like, I dunno found Jesus, or at least the homophobic version of Jesus, and decided you were just going to date girls and forget about your Jewish boyfriend.” 

“No,” Erwin said laughing a little. “The priest was actually pretty okay with me saying that my boyfriend was the one texting me. Hey, uhm, actually, I'm...uh,” Erwin said, trying to collect his thoughts. “I mean, I'm not super great with emotional and mushy kind of talking, but I really appreciate the fact that you're my boyfriend.”

“You're pretty good at this whole boyfriend thing too,” Levi responds and Erwin can hear the smile in his voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the record, the "embezzling CCD director" thing did actually happen to me while I was in confirmation class.


	4. Touch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, I was on vacation with my family for a few days!
> 
> Modern/Reincarnation AU

At first, Levi hates him.

He's not sure why he does, but there's just something about the man that makes Levi's blood boil whenever he comes in. Every other morning he comes into the coffee shop where Levi works and he always orders a large hot coffee with two shots of espresso, which in the grand scheme of things, is a very simple order to compared to what some people get, but it still irritates Levi anyways. Everything about him irritates Levi. 

He comes in and gives Levi a little smile while asking for “the usual” but Levi still asks him for his exact order anyways. 

“Well, I thought I came in here enough to be a regular,” he replies with a little laugh. “I guess not. I'd like a large hot coffee with two shots of espresso.” 

Levi writes down the order on a cup and then asks him for his name.

“Erwin,” he replies. 

Just for fun, Levi decides to write his name as “Irvin” on the cup.

Quickly he makes the man's drink. It's not too complicated, so might as well make it himself instead of passing it onto another barista. He turns back to Erwin and to hand him the cup of hot coffee. Just as Levi reaches out, Erwin's hand brushes gently against his own. For a moment, Levi's mind wanders far, far from the coffee shop to a thick forest filled with dark trees and rainy weather. Erwin is there, his voice booming to Levi and the others, all dressed in dark green cloaks on horseback. Large shadows lurk in between the trees. 

This isn't the first time Levi's had a vision in that setting before, but it's the first time he's seen this Erwin fellow in one. 

Erwin gives him a slightly concerned look and Levi looks away, muttering a “come again” to him before returning fully back to reality. 

After Erwin takes his seat and sits down and takes out his laptop, Hange comes in through the door, looking as she normally does: dressed in skinny jeans and a graphic t-shirt under a plaid shirt combined with a slightly frazzled expression.

“Okay, so,” Hange starts. “I have a test last class with a teacher who believes in conspiracy theories, and not any of the cool kind like the government is hiding evidence of Bigfoot but like 'we-never-walked-on-the-moon' stuff. I need a large caramel latte with an extra shot of espresso to cheer myself up. Should I get soy milk? I kind of want to go vegan but my mom is convinced I'll get oestoperosis. She read something about taking estrogen and osteoporosis so she's convinced I need hella calcium, but like I read in class – ”

“Hange, slow down, you're talking a mile a minute,” Levi stops her. “I'm sure one soy latte won't kill you. Though it is 60 cents more.” 

“Oh frick,” Hange says. “Whatever, I'll do it,” she says, handing her credit card over to him. 

“Do you know who he is?” Levi asks as he takes her card, nodding subtly to the man over in the corner. “He seems familiar.” 

Hange turns around (rather quite obviously, much to Levi's dismay.) “Oh, him?” Hange says, turning back to face Levi. “His name is Dr. Smith. He's a professor at my university. I had to take a gen ed history class with him. He can be kind of boring, but I did appreciate his bad jokes. A lot of the girls in my class liked him just because he's hot. I don't really see it though.”

“Hange, that's because you're gay.” 

Hange's face lights up. “So you do think he's hot?” Her face bears an expression that says “gotcha!”

Levi cocks his head in disappoint at his roommate. “Alright, yes, he is hot,” he says. “But that's not the point. The fuck, have you been eying him for me?”

“Not really,” Hange says, taking a sip from their latte. “I mean, you introduced me to Petra, so I do keep an eye out on guys and girls I think that you'll like. I'm not saying you should go after him though, I was just waiting for you to notice him since he comes in a lot, just out of my own curiosity. I dunno, if you take away the fact that he's in his mid-thirties and divorced, there's just something about him that tells me that he's your type.” 

Hange says a quick goodbye before taking a seat on the other side of the cafe. 

Levi notices on that on the countertop there is a brown leather wallet. He knows it's not Hange's, since she shuns anything that involves killing an animal. He opens it up and finds and ID picturing a blond-haired, blue-eyed man and reading the name “Erwin Smith.” 

He knows that the right thing to do is to return the wallet, even if this Dr. Smith has an air about him that Levi can't stand. He tells the on-shift manager about it to excuse himself from behind the customer counter. 

“I think this might be yours,” Levi tells him when he arrives at his table in the back of the cafe. 

“Oh,” Erwin replies, a hint of embarrassed surprise in his voice. “Thank you,” he says, reaching out for the wallet.

Again, like a spark, Erwin's touch ignites a vision deep within Levi's memories. 

He's gazing upon Erwin's sleeping face – his sleeping, bearded, fever-ridden face. They're in a hospital, but Levi isn't a nurse there, he's a visitor in a black jacket that's far too big for his little body. Erwin is bandaged up and missing a right arm. 

“Do I know you from somewhere else around here?” Erwin asks, a puzzled look on his face.

“No, no you don't.” Levi responds. 

...

Erwin starts to come in at different times. Not only does he continue coming in in the mornings, but sometimes he stops by during the afternoon and the evening, when it's less busy than the caffeine rush hour. They've gotten to know each other better at this point. Levi decides that he doesn't hate Erwin, he's actually quite nice, even if he boasts an air of upper middle class upbringing. Erwin sometimes comes by just to talk, and Levi enjoys that. 

“Hange came by my office hours today, she's not even my student anymore, just to talk about you.” Erwin says warmly. “So, are you one of Hange's classmates in the biology department?”

“Nah,” Levi responds. “We were friends in high school, I'm actually taking classes at Trost Community College to become a nurse. Since Hange goes to St. Maria's University downtown, we decided to live together. She didn't really feel too positive about the on-campus housing, so she thought it would be okay to live with a friend.” 

“You want to be a nurse?” Erwin asks with a curious smile.

“I figured that the world's a shitty place,” he tells him. “Might as well do something to help.” Levi takes a moment to examine Erwin's face before continueing. “Hey, I have kind of a weird question for you,” Levi begins. 

“I always welcome questions,” Erwin says. 

“Do you believe in reincarnation?” 

Erwin takes a deep breath through his nose in thought. “I'm not entirely sure,” Erwin tells him. “I'm not a particularly religious or even spiritual man. I do think there's some sort of afterlife. Perhaps we are reincarnated when we die, but I can't say for sure. What do you think? That might be a better question for yourself.” 

“Well,” Levi responds. “I'm Jewish. We think there's an afterlife, but we don't have a set in stone version of it, but some of us believe in reincarnation.”

“And do you?” Erwin asks. 

“I don't really know,” Levi answers. “I never really thought about it much before. I'm not exactly the best example of a practicing Jew. But, sometimes, I get the feeling that I was someone else in another time period. Maybe not just time period, but in a whole different universe,” Levi looks back up at him. “Do you ever feel that way?” 

“Sometimes,” Erwin responds after a moment. “But I think everyone experiences feelings like that from time to time, be it dejavu, or experiencing vivid reoccurring dreams. But, who am I to make a definitive answer on what happens to us all?” he says, starting to lean in towards Levi. “Now, how about that coffee?”

Levi rolls his eyes despite the small smile on his face as he starts to make Erwin's usual drink. “God, you're boring, don't you ever want anything different?”

“I like having some order and normalcy to things.” Erwin responds, smiling back at Levi. 

“But you've changed the times when you get your coffee.” Levi says slyly.

Well, you've got me there,” Erwin replies. 

Levi hands Erwin the coffee, mentally preparing himself for another vision when their fingers touch. 

This time, the memory is of a different sort, it's more tender, it's sweeter. They're not on a battlefield or in a military hospital. They're in a bedroom – their bedroom. Levi sees Erwin caress his face and and kiss him gently as the light of a new dawn whispers through their window. Erwin tucks a lock of Levi's hair behind his ear while telling him “you get more and more beautiful everyday.” 

Levi hates to admit it, but he's started to feel romantic feelings like that for Erwin in this life as well. 

“Levi,” Erwin says, interrupting the vision. 

Levi snaps back to the present.

“I don't mean to put you on the spot here, but I would like to ask you to dinner,” he continues. “My intentions are purely to get to know you better. There's just something about you that interests me. But of course I understand that someone as young as you could possibly not feel very comfortable on what looks like to be a date with a man nearly 15 years your senior.”

Of course he has no chance with him. Erwin's a good guy. He's not going to date a 21-year-old at age 35.

“I'm a student working a minimum wage job with a vegetarian roommate,” Levi replies. “If you're paying for my food then I'm interested.”

Erwin smiles at him. “Sounds wonderful.” 

…

Levi meets him the following Saturday evening at an Italian restaurant downtown. 

He's had more visions and dreams since then. He knows about the exact horrors of the Titans, and how they plagued that world, and how they fought them despite the corruption of the government of the Walls. He remembers his friends today were there as well. He knows about the Ackerman clan, the history of censorship in the Walls that extended from banning books to erasing memories. He knows about trying to kill Erwin at first. 

The dinner starts off with the causal small talk typical of two people getting to know each other, no talk of lost worlds and memories. 

“So, nursing, how is that going for you?” Erwin asks. 

“Well, apparently my bedside manner is lacking, who knew?” Levi says with light sarcasm. “But I'm a lot more precise and efficient than some of the other students. Too bad it's taking me three years instead of two,” he continues. “I had to take less classes at a time so I could work more. I should finish up this semester though, fucking finally.” 

“My mother was a nurse,” Erwin says. “She worked in obstetrics. Do you have a specialty in mind?” 

“I kind of want to work in trauma care.” Levi answers. “I just always felt like I was supposed to be around that kind of thing. Chaos everywhere. I...used to think it was because I lived in New York City as a little kid and that's just so much busier than most of Minnesota.”

“You were raised by an uncle, right?” Erwin asks. 

“Sort of, my mom and I lived with him when I was a kid because we...wait, did I ever tell you that I lived with my uncle? I don't think I ever mentioned Uncle Kenny to you.”

“Are you sure?” Erwin asks in a genuinely confused tone. “I though you had?”

“I don't think I have...” Levi's voice trails off. He wonders if he should ask Erwin about his family, but he has a feeling his father befell a similar fate. 

“I was just raised by my mother for most of my life,” Erwin says. 

Levi knows what's coming next.

“My father, he was a politician. He had been a teacher and then a superintendent of schools before he entered politics. He was running for congressman when he allegedly committed suicide,” he continues. “My mother accepts it as is, but I still don't.”

“Oh my God,” Levi says after a moment. “I don't know what to say.

“It's alright, I've mostly moved on.” Erwin assures him. “but, thank you for the concern.”

That's not all though, Levi wants to say. 

“I feel like, sometimes, I was supposed to be more remarkable than this,” Levi says after a moment. “Like, I'm going to be a nurse, it's so utterly boring and mundane in the grand scheme of things.”

“I don't think it is,” Erwin says. “Like you said earlier last week, you want to help out this world. I think it takes a remarkable type of person to want to do that.” 

Levi reaches for a breadstick on the basket of the table only touch Erwin's hand instead of a piece of bread.

“Sorry,” Erwin mumbles, a little embarrassed, but Levi doesn't hear it.

“I had loved you since the first time I set my eyes on you.” Levi hears Erwin says in his memory. “Whatever happens today, I want you to know that.”

They're leaving the Walls, Levi knows this. He still doesn't know everything, but he has a feeling that what comes next isn't pretty. 

He wishes that this Erwin would remember more. 

...

The memory that becomes most vivid to Levi is the memory of Erwin dying. Perhaps what is most vivid of all is not the images of the scene, but rather it's how Levi feels in that moment. 

In his memory, he's not shocked or broken down, he's not scared or confused. He just accepts that the inevitable came.

This Levi, the Levi of this world and time, doesn't feel comfortable with simply accepting the death of the man he loved.

He doesn't see Erwin as much anymore. It was almost depressing. Talking to him without him knowing everything was like continuously visiting the grave of someone and expecting them to come back to life. 

It's early in the morning at the hospital. Levi has finally begun working fulltime at a Trost General Hospital as a trauma nurse. He's getting adjusted, going through training, but it's better than working at the horrid coffee shop. 

At the beginning of the shift, he wonders to himself about the others, the ones he hasn't meet in this life yet. Is Mikasa a normal high school girl who sings in the choir and plays on the volleyball team? What about Eren, is he still angry as ever, or has this life mellowed out his emotions? What about Armin, Jean, and even Bertolt and Reiner? Where they all born in Minnesota, or were they spread across the world? 

When the head nurse of the trauma unit gives him his assignment for the day, he puts the thoughts of the others away. He's assigned to take care of a man who had just lost his arm in a car accident. 

The nurse he's assigned to work with his oftentimes too absent minded to follow of the new nurse protocol, and she tells him to go on to room 104A while she goes and grabs a cup of coffee. Levi likes it this way. He's always been one to do things his own way. He even held his blades in a different way in his past life, he remembers. 

The room is stertile and just a little too warm, but Levi likes things that way. It's cleaning, it's almost comforting to him. 

“Oh my God,” Levi whispers to himself when he sees who is in the hospital bed. 

Erwin is lying in the hospital bed. An Erwin that's missing his right arm to be exact. 

He looks half asleep. Thank God for modern medicine to keep him more alert today than he he was back then. 

Levi walks forward towards the bed to touch that wonderful, perfect face. 

Erwin's body becomes fully aware at Levi's touch. 

Instantly, Levi knows what he's thinking when Erwin turns to look at him. His eyes are filled with both new wonder and wisdom. 

He's thinking of Titans. He's thinking of Hange's experiments and Petra's kind heart, of Mike, of Nanaba, of children who could become monsters, of the countless others, of his father. His mind is racing with thoughts of conspiracy and military coups. He thinks about his dream of humanity's freedom. 

He thinks about Marie and Nile. 

He thinks about how much he loved Levi in that life. 

“Oh, my God,” he says, trying to extend his sole arm to embrace Levi. “Oh, oh Levi, oh my God.” 

Levi stops caring about everything else in that moment. He peppers Erwin's face with kisses, so happy that he finally has him, this Erwin who now embodies both the Erwin of this world and the other. 

“Welcome home.” Levi tells him through tears.


	5. Scars

Erwin was most decidedly a morning person. 

He arose at the crack of dawn cheerfully and readily. Levi, on the other hand, struggled with insomnia, and the lack of sleep he got any night made mornings a miserable time for him. 

“Good morning, Dear,” Erwin says as he kisses the scar just above Levi's eyebrow. 

“Oh, God,” Levi moans, still struggling to remain alert after his probably 3-and-a-half hours of sleep. “Your mouth is disgusting in the morning. Don't kiss me until you brush your teeth.”

“Love you too,” Erwin jokes as he gets out of bed and heads for the bathroom to take his morning shower.

Levi still lays there in bed, contemplating the duties he'll have for the day. In just a few days they'll be out on another expedition, which means today and tomorrow will be filled with training and checking gears and supplies, as well as hoping and wishing that the trip outside the Walls will not be a disaster or a loss like it usually is.

Lazily, he gets up and looks into the mirror on the wall of the bedroom. He notes the scars, even the faint ones, on his body. Across his face are the smallest of nicks, just little marks of tissue reminding him of tangles with knifes in days past. They litter his neck as well, in a slightly more obvious fashion. The slouch of his too big night shirt reveals larger, deeper scars that cover his shoulders. Everyone in the Scouting Legion has scars, but Levi has far, far more than anyone else. They don't bother him much in theory. Levi admits it fully, that he's vain and knows that he's attractive, scars or not. Yet, the sheer number of scars lets everyone else know that he's not like them, he's not from here.

Erwin, however, absolutely loves to kiss Levi's scars. Levi supposes that makes it all slightly better,

Erwin enters the room again, all fresh and clean from the steamy shower. Walking up from behind, he wraps his arms around Levi's waist to press his lips against the scars on Levi's neck. 

“It's a little inconvenient that you're always the horniest in the morning,” Levi says as Erwin continues to kiss the marks on his neck. 

“I can't help it,” Erwin tells him. “You always look so beautiful in the morning light.” 

“Get dressed, you old man,” Levi chides as he frees himself from Erwin's embrace. “We have things to do today.” 

Erwin relents with faux-reluctantness and begins to dress for the day. Levi watches him for a moment before readying for his shower, until he watches Erwin struggle as he normally did with his bolo tie. Levi had always hated that tie, but it was standard for commanders so he still helped Erwin tie it nearly every morning.

“Let me get that for you,” Levi says, as he returns to Erwin and grabs the tie from his hands. “You've been doing this for years now and you still can't do this correctly. If I didn't know any better I'd think you were faking it just so I could do it for you.” 

Erwin smirks at him. “I can't say I don't mind it when you do it.” 

As Levi finishes, his hand trails down Erwin's arm, to his wrist, and to his hand. He grabs his hand and turns it over to touch his palm. Levi gently traces the scar on Erwin's palm with his fingers. 

Levi hates this scars more than he could ever hate any scar of his own. 

“You know, I don't mind this scar,” Erwin explains. “It reminds me of how far you've come. Or, alternatively, how far I've come. It took a lot to win over the love of a man who wanted me dead at one point.” he says,only half-jokingly. 

“God, there is something wrong with me. How did I go from wanting to kill you to waking up next to you every morning?” Levi says. “I feel awful about it now, and this scar of yours always reminds me of back then.” 

“Don't,” Erwin tells him as he closes the gap between his lips and Levi's forehead. 

When Erwin's mouth parts from his brow, Levi responds by taking the palm of his commander to his lips.


	6. Healing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still churning these out, slowly but surely!
> 
> A domestic/modern AU inspired by some of the happenings of Chapter 72.

“Well, long story short, Mom, Erwin broke his legs and it's kind of my fault.” 

Maybe if Levi wasn't cleaning the hardwood staircase in their living room then Erwin wouldn't have slipped and fallen down said stairs. Though, maybe he still would have. He also maybe wouldn't have fallen down the stairs if he took his shoes off before entering the house like a decent human being who didn't want to constantly dirty the staircase. It's not like Levi would ever be entirely sure.

Oh well. 

It was a particularly mild and rainy Sunday morning in which Levi was spending in the grocery store with their infant daughter strapped to his chest, his phone held up to his ear with his mother on the other end of the line, and his shopping cart full. He was tired from his shift last night (or, more accurately, his shift earlier this morning) but since Erwin had a grand total of one fully-function limb, grocery shopping (among most other things both inside and outside of the house) was his chore for least the next month and a half. 

“Okay, Mom, I have to go now. I'm almost at the register,” he says into his phone. “Yeah I'll call you again this weekend. We'll try to visit when Erwin gets better,” Levi takes a pause to listen to his mother. “Yes, I know how much you want to see Lily again. No, Mom, for the last time, I can't take in one of Mrs. Berliner's kittens, Erwin won't let me get another one. Bye, Mom, I have to go.” 

Levi finally has the chance to hang up his cell phone. “Well,” Levi says to the dark-haired 8-month-old strapped to his chest. “Look like it's be just you and me leaving the house for the next six-to-eight weeks.”

Greeted by the meows of three hungry cats, Levi returned home to their little house to find Erwin on the couch with his legs propped up with pillows watching one of those World War II “in color” documentaries on the television. So much for typing up lesson plans for his long term substitute at the high school. 

After taking off his shoes like the clean and courteous human being he is, Levi says a quick (and rather curt, as per usual) hello as he places Lily in the playpen of the living room before he starts to unload all of the grocery bags. The shopping list had been made especially with Erwin in mind, and it showed as Levi unpacked boxes and bags of Erwin's preferred brands and varieties of food. He didn't ask for the coffee he normally wanted, but rather he requested that Levi pick him up some instant hot cocoa for the rainy March days they were expecting instead. (Which, Levi had to admit, was kind of cute.) 

“My mom called,” Erwin said from the other room. “She said she could watch Lily a couple of days this week.” 

“Sure, if she wants,” Levi said as he began to open cans of cat food. “I was just planning on working Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday night.” 

“Only three days this week?” 

“I told the head nurse I could only work part-time for the next month or so,” Levi said, emptying the cans into each of the cat's dishes. “I can't really work full time if you can't take care of Lily right now.” 

“Hey, Levi?” Erwin called out, after a moment. 

“Yeah, Erwin?” Levi called back as he turned on the faucet to wash his hands.

“Thanks, for everything,” Erwin told him. “You know, doing all of the stuff around the house while I'm healing.” 

Levi entered the living room again. “You know, you don't have to thank me for taking care of you, you are my husband, after all,” he said as he sat down on the couch next to Erwin. “I mean, I do live with because I like you. I don't do this for other people unless they're paying me. Or more likely, unless their insurance is paying the hospital, which is paying me. But you get my point.” 

“Yeah, but you're good at this kind of stuff,” Erwin said. “A lot better than most people.” 

Levi began to draw his legs to his chest. “Well, it's my fault, most likely,” he replied some what apologetically. “I should have warned you about the stairs being wet.”

“It doesn't matter now,” Erwin says. “What happened happened. Besides, sitting on the couch watching historical documentaries while you cook for me isn't too bad.”

“You do that most of the time anyways,” Levi responded, only half jokingly. “Seriously, when is the last time you cooked?” 

Before Erwin could respond, their chatter was interrupted by the sound of a little, high-pitched voice crying across the room. Levi's parental instinct kicked in almost immediately. Lily didn't need to be changed, nor should she be hungry at this hour. She was probably just feeling lonely and unloved, wanting the attention of at least one of her fathers. Gently, he lifted her out of the playpen to rock her back and forth, but her little tears kept coming. 

“Let me hold her.” Erwin offers. 

Levi walks back to the couch slowly, still trying to gently rock away Lily's crying before placing the little girl in Erwin's arm. 

Erwin wraps his arm securely and snugly around Lily, who almost instantly stops crying. 

“Well it's official, you're the favorite parent,” Levi said, defeat lacing his tone. “She never cries when you hold her.” 

“Well, she'll appreciate you more when she's older and realizes that you're the only one who's good at cooking.” 

The cats padded their paws into the living room. Cinnamon hopped up onto the couch and Princess soon followed. Stella lazed around at the foot of the couch. 

“Erwin, don't worry about it,” Levi began again, scratching the top of Cinnamon's sable coated head. “Really, it's nothing. I like taking care of you.” 

“I like it when you take care of me,” Erwin responded smiling at his husband. 

Levi is glad that their state values education, which means that Erwin's job provides good health benefits like paid leave for things like this. But mostly, he's just glad that he has Erwin.


	7. Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Officially more than a week late on this prompt. Oh well, I took another liberal interpretation of this prompt as well.
> 
> High School/Drama Club AU

“I fucking hate everything right now.” Levi tells Petra.

Of all of the musicals that South Trost High School could put on, they choose Les Miser-fucking-ables, one of the longest shows with one of the largest casts and some of the most beloved songs in the modern musical theatre canon. In the most concise, yet probably not the most polite, way to possibly describe the situation: they were going to fuck this up. 

Levi wonders how he got into this mess, and then he remembers that it's all the fault of Erwin Smith, the literally golden boy of the STHS Drama Club, the co-director of and lead baritone of the TitanTones Men's a cappella group, and the production's Javert. 

To be fair, Erwin's not the one at fault for the choice of musical. The choice of production was the fault of Mrs. Pixis – the eccentric English teacher combination Drama Club director who Levi is convinced only got the job because she's Principal Pixis' third wife. Erwin, however is the reason that Levi originally was stuck working backstage and then got promoted to co-stage manager despite not having any experience.

They were sitting in British Literature with Mrs. Pixis when she had announced the year's winter musical would be Les Miserables. Erwin Smith, quite loudly, suggested to Levi that he should join the technical crew, which of course, Mrs. Pixis clutched onto and brought it up the following week at parent-teacher conferences to Levi's mother, who loved the idea. When Ian Dietrich suddenly moves to Wisconsin during the middle of the production, Levi gets appointed to the position of stage manager. 

Opening night starts out fairly well, although that's a lenient description in Levi's mind. High schoolers are perpetually too chatty to ever behave backstage, three people have had issues with their mic packs so far, and at least two of the leads have a possible case of strep. To Levi, everything is a complete disaster. 

The factory girls dressed in their blue calico line up on the side of that stage that Levi is currently on for their upcoming scene. Nanaba and Petra appear in their chorus costumes as well for the time being – they will be in their “real costumes” later towards the end of Act I. 

“You know, your nervous pen clicking is just as aloud as us talking back here,” Petra tells him in a playful sort of way.

Levi rolls his eyes at Petra's comment. “Alright, on stage everyone,” he whispers as loudly and as harshly as possible. Marie Spiro, the production's Fantine and the still friendly ex-girlfriend of Erwin gives Levi a smile before she walks on. The shade of her blonde wig clashes with her thick, dark brown eyebrows, but the theatre director thinks that picking fibers as light as possible shows Fantine's naivety or innocence or some other bullshit that clearly clashes with Marie's already innocent, olive face. 

“At the End of the Day” continues on, with a few bad notes here and there from the chorus. Some of the drama club only kids like Nanaba and Rico could not harmonize to save their lives, much to the dismay of choir kids like Petra and Marie. 

Levi whisphers orders and question into the mic of his headset to the lighting crew and the sound crew. The spotlight on Marie needs to be a little brighter while she's being reprimanded by the foreman. Her big song is coming up in the next scene, after all. The audience needs to notice her more. 

The crowd on the stage dissipates, leaving only Marie behind. Here it comes, “I Dreamed a Dream.” One of the most beautiful songs in the show, which Levi had to admit, even made him of all people tear up a bit once or twice. 

And, of course, he can barely hear her. He can barely hear Marie Spiro, the best alto in choir as well as vice president of the Show Choir, known for her great belting voice, sing “I Dreamed a Dream.” Not only one of this show's best songs, but one of the famous songs in all of musical theatre history. 

It's got to be the mic. 

“Mike, what the fuck? Turn Marie's mic up, this is literally one of the show's most famous songs, Jesus fuck.” Levi practically barks into the headset microphone to Mike up in the sound booth. 

“Fuck, which one is Marie's again?” Mike asks. 

“It's number four. It was just turned up during the beginning of the factory scene, and you literally just turned it down after she sang like four bars,” Levi responds into the headset. “How did you forget in that small amount of time?!” 

Marie's a nice enough girl. She doesn't deserve this. But you know who else doesn't deserve this? Levi. Levi doesn't deserve any of this. 

Luckily, by the goodness of whatever higher power there may be, the mic is turned up by the time that the song really begins and picks up with the main theme. 

Levi sighs a sigh of relief. Marie goes on to perform as expected – wonderfully. There can't be a dry eye in the theatre. Levi thinks to himself to himself that his mom is probably sitting there crying out of empathy rather than sympathy. He doesn't know how to feel about that and decides that it's best to focus on the show for now. 

Levi quickly turns his mind to other things and begins cuing techies to change the scenery to the docks for the next song. He prays to God that Marie's upcoming wig change doesn't mess up her mic pack like it did during their final dress rehearsal and he begins to regret skipping out on going to Temple with his mom so much. 

“Hey, what happened to Marie at the beginning of 'I Dreamed A Dream'?” A voice asks him.

Levi turns around to see Erwin position himself for his next entrance. 

“Your stupid friend forget to turn the volume up again for her big solo,” Levi tells him. “Is he stoned or something?”

He shakes his head. “No, Mike only does that for marching band, but never for drama club.” 

Levi mutters a “huh” as he looks over Erwin's custom. He does look good in the 19th century French police uniform, but by God, does Levi have mixed feelings about those mutton chops glued to Erwin's pretty face. He wonders why he didn't notice their too fluffy texture before when they were hate-making out in the green room. (Though Erwin did try to protest Levi referring to it as “hate making-out.” But that is not the point here.) 

Marie hurries backstage for her wig change, and fortunately, much to Levi's relief, they're able to get the wig on without disrupting the position of her mic pack. 

She hurries back out and Erwin pulls his arms around Levi's waist. “Give me a kiss before I go out?” Erwin asks.

“Okay, fine,” Levi replies before leaning upwards on his toes and placing his hands on Erwin's shoulders to properly kiss him. 

As Erwin leaves, Petra comes up from behind Levi. “Wait, so are you two dating now?” she asks. 

Levi gives her a confused look. “Of course not, he's a douchebag.”

“So you just casually make out with any guy you find to be a douchebag?” 

Levi chooses to ignore her comment.

…

After the show, Erwin has Levi's hand in his. 

“Hey, I'm getting my tux for prom soon. Do you want us to match?” Erwin asks, leaning towards Levi's ear as they walk through the crowd of the performers, their friends and their parents in the hall outside of the school auditorium.“Also are you wearing a suit or a tux?” 

Before Levi can give an answer, Marie comes up to the two, her face bearing an excited expression while still covered in the too heavy stage make up. “Oh my gosh, you guys are dating, aw! That's so great, Erwin's such a great guy, isn't he, Levi? Aw, I'm just so happy for the two of you!”

She gives them both a big hug before moving onto Nanaba, complimenting her on how wonderful she sounded, especially during her swan song. 

Levi looks over at Petra, her red hair in messy waves from being in pincurls underneath her chestnut wig. 

“Gosh, why does everyone think that Erwin and I are dating?” Levi in anguish to her.

“Levi, he kisses you and holds your hands. You're going to prom together,” she looks him straight in the eyes. “You're dating.” 

With that Levi's mother finds him in the sea of other students and parents, her eyes brimming with pride. “Oh, sweetie, that was fantastic!” she says, bringing him in for a tight hug. “I am so proud of you for being such a big part of that show!”

Erwin greets her politely and thanks her for coming to see the production. “We couldn't have done it without Levi,” he tells her.

“Erwin, you did phenomenally,” she remarks. “How on earth did my son get both such a talented and polite boyfriend?” 

Alright, maybe they were dating.


End file.
